Fatal Frame: Usagi's Trials
by Nitewulf
Summary: Set before Rei's journey into the world of Fatal Frame. This time Usagi must travel to Himuro Mansion to find her lost brother Shingo.
1. Prologue

_Pat_, _pat_, _pat_, _pat_! "Hey guys, wait up! Geez." A young man with sandy blond hair stopped to catch his breath. He leaned against a mossy tree, putting his entire weight against it. He glanced back at the direction he and his friends were traveling, noticing that they actually stopped for him.

"Slowpoke… at this rate we'll never get there!" A young man with dark brown hair sneered. A young girl with brown hair that cascaded over her shoulders punched him in the shoulder.

"Be nice to Shingo!" The boy rubbed his arm and stuck his tongue out at her.

"Always protecting him, Mika. What do you see in him?"

"Are you guys coming?" Another young man appeared, pushing his glasses up his nose just a tad bit further.

"Yeah, it's just Shingo being a fat ass again." The young man dodged another hit from Mika.

"I am not a fat ass, Takeo!" He sneered again, turning away from his fellow companions.

"Can we just hurry this expedition up? I have more important things to do."

Yasahiro helped Shingo to his feet, "Let's get this over and done with, my friend."

Shingo nodded, however he did not move at all. _This trip is a terrible idea_, Shingo pondered, yet why had he agreed to it? This trip was supposed to be the adventure of a lifetime, his three friends and him were traveling to the darkest spot of Japan looking for a truly horrific site. Of course they researched the place, upon Yasahiro's request (he didn't like going into things blindly), but they found surprisingly little about their destination.

"Hurry up Shingo!" Mika's melodious voice startled him out his dream. He shook his head and ran to catch up to his companions, but that did not stop the negative feelings from overflowing inside of him. He loved ghost stories like the next person, but that's all they were… just ghost stories. Now they were looking for the real thing! He ran right into Takeo and stumbled back.

"Damn it Takeo, what the…?" His mouth attempted to form the expletive but his voice stopped dead in his throat as his eyes wandered to the structure looming ahead of him. The color drained from his face, as he contemplated turning back and running toward safety. To the right of him, soft whimpers could be heard coming from Mika.

"A-alright everyone…." Takeo turned around, attempting to force a heroic smile, "who's going in first?"

Shingo walked over to Mika, placing a hand on her shoulder, he whispered soothing words to her. Yasahiro cleared his throat, "I don't believe it's a good idea to split up, Takeo."

"We came here together, we go in together," Shingo agreed with Yasahiro. Mika pulled away from Shingo, shaking her head. "It's alright Mika, we won't stay here long. Just a quick look inside and we'll leave."

She dared a look at him, and he smiled. She nodded in defeat, but held tightly to Shingo.

"That doesn't change anything… someone still has to go in first!" Takeo declared, but he quickly hung his head.

"Are you volunteering yourself, Takeo?" Yasahiro managed a smirk, as Takeo turned bright red and turned his face away from his companions.

"N-n-no!"

Shingo turned back towards the structure, gulping down a scream and worked up the courage to lead the group towards the front door. _We're finally here at Himuro Mansion…_

_And what an adventure it will be_.


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Usagi plopped down on the floor of the Hikawa Temple and sighed.

"What's wrong Usagi?" Makoto politely asked her rabbit haired friend. Usagi glanced around at her four concerned friends; the blue-haired genius, Ami, the short-tempered priestess, Rei, the motherly tomboy, Makoto, and the glamorous Sailor V, Minako. Usagi shook her head, trying to hide the tears that had begun to form in her sapphire blue eyes. Rei placed a hand on her friend's shoulder.

"Shingo hasn't returned from his trip."

"Oh? Where was he headed to?" Minako flashed her princess a quick smile.

"Himuro Mansion." Ami, Minako, and Makoto all shook their heads.

"And that…?" Makoto questioned. The raven-haired priestess stood up quickly, and walked towards her fire. "Rei…?"

Usagi wiped the tears from her eyes, "He never told us where exactly he was going…."

The blonde rabbit trailed off, and picked herself up to follow Rei. She saw the priestess captivated by the images of what the fire showed her. Rei snapped herself out of her trance and turned towards her princess. "The fire showed nothing Usagi… I'm sorry."

Usagi hung her head, "I just thought… hoped… maybe something…."

Rei shook her head, "I'm sorry, my princess, but the fire revealed nothing."

Usagi nodded, walking with her raven-haired friend to join up with the rest of their rest. She quickly snatched up her bag and headed for the exit. "Sorry guys, but I'm not feeling well."

Her fellow senshi nodded and whispered their goodbyes in unison. Makoto started to get up, but Usagi stopped her, "I'll be fine Mako! Thanks for worrying about me, everyone."

The sky looked about as bad as Usagi's stomach felt. She knew something was wrong, she felt it in the deepest pits of her stomach and it sat there, turning itself over and over again. _Where the hell are you, Shingo?_

Rain sprinkled the pavement as she let herself into the house. "Usagi? Oh… hello dear."

Her mother attempted a sweet smile, but Usagi saw the deep pain eroding the lips of her mother. Usagi nodded and quickly made her way up the steps to lock herself in her room. She collapsed onto her bed, sobbing; she knew her friends wondered why this was the first time she showed concern about her younger brother. Usagi rolled over to face the ceiling that glittered with twinkling stars.

Her brother had been missing at least a week, and had not sent any word home about his travels. This was unlike her brother, he was usually a baby when it came to traveling without Mom and Dad. But this time, he was so different, he hadn't even told their parents were he was headed to. It wasn't until Usagi heard him sobbing in his room that she even asked him where he was going.

He told her all he knew about the Himuro Mansion, that his friends weren't even sure it existed, or where it was. They were going to the Mutsu Region on a whim that Yasahiro had. Yasahiro figured out that the mansion was nestled in between the Himuro Mountains, but there had been no reports about whether the mansion was even there anymore.

Shingo explained his fears to Usagi; the fact that this mansion was supposedly haunted with malevolent spirits which could actually kill you. Usagi was taken aback by this notion… most believed that it was hard enough for spirits to make contact with you, but these spirits were able to kill. He also said that this mansion was also known by another name: the House of Mutilation.

Usagi attempted to shake off the sleep that was attempting to encase her; the thought of her brother being killed by a ghost was outrageous, but that was one thing that drifted with her into sleep.


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Shingo turned the handle to the front door, while attempting to keep his nerve. Mika let out a cry and clamped on harder to Shingo's arm. _You're not helping Mika_, Shingo clenched his teeth, and attempted to smile at his long-time crush.

_Creeaaaaaaaaak_! The front door opened to reveal nothing… it was blacker than any darkness that the four friends had ever seen. Yasahiro fumbled with a flashlight as they all gathered into the mansion, making sure to stick close to each other. The flashlight lit up the room and quickly dimmed. Yasahiro hit the flashlight a couple of time, causing the flashlight to quickly return to its original brightness. Takeo gulped and took the flashlight from Yasahiro. "Not so bad… see?"

Takeo shined the flashlight, bouncing the light off prominent figures located throughout the room. Mika screamed, "A face! I just saw a face!"

"Where?" Takeo shined the light even faster around the room until Yasahiro tried to fight it away from him.

"Will you just give me the damn flashlight!" Yasahiro wrestled the flashlight away from Takeo.

"Geez, asshole." Takeo stuck out his tongue and crossed his arms in a huff. Mika sobbed into Shingo's shoulder, clamping her arms tightly around him.

"M-Mika… it's alright. Just calm down!" Shingo gasped for air, and Mika loosened her grip. "Let's just look around quickly and get the hell out of here."

The group shuffled around with Yasahiro taking the lead. The room they found themselves in was quite literally falling apart.

Shingo moved forward until a rough hand pulled him back. He turned to face Mika who hissed, "Careful!"

He looked over his shoulder to see what he almost ran into… or rather fell into. A gaping hole stared back at Shingo. "Gahhhh!"

Shingo whipped his head around to see Takeo pointing into a barred off area. " A…a… I swear there… there was just a person, no, a little girl! She was curled into a little ball, crying!"

Yasahiro shook his head and made his way up a small flight of stairs. "Guys, there's another flight of stairs up here!"

"I think we should leave! This place isn't safe… and I'm not just talking about the fact that it's falling apart." Mika glanced around her, a look of sheer terror covered every angle of her face.

"Nonsense, spirits do not exist. There is no scientific proof supporting the existence of ghosts. Let us continue." Yasahiro adjusted his glasses and smirked. _Don't you feel that bit of common sense that's screaming at us to leave? _Shingo thought frowning, however he continued forward, dragging Mika who was still attached to his arm. The four of them made their way up the stairs, creaking every other step as they went along.

"Mika… see? Nothing to be afraid of." Shingo tried to a make a brave smile, hoping to give her a boost of confidence. Instead, her eyes grew wider with each step that they climbed. A chill ran up and down Shingo's spine, and he shuddered a bit, causing Mika to let go of him. He glanced around, frowning because there wasn't much to notice on this floor. A scream pierced the entire mansion, causing Shingo to jump, and he saw that the scream was coming from Mika.

"What's wrong?" Shingo ran over to comfort her, sensing that something coming towards them. A blast of cold air answered Shingo, and Mika began to shiver violently.

"Help… me. HELP ME!" A man grabbed onto him and shook him; he felt the energy drain as the man's grip tightened. Takeo took a swing at him, but completely missed. Shingo stumbled back as Mika fell to the floor sobbing.

"Guys, c'mon! Before he comes back!" Shingo yelled.

"But… but I hit him, I mean I must have!" Takeo's eyes widened as he gripped his hand. Yasahiro opened a door and ushered the others in. Shingo grabbed Mika's arm and forced her to stand up.

"Takeo, Mika! You need to snap out of it! Hurry!" The friends sprinted through the door and stopped abruptly. They arrived in a hallway… a hallway unlike any other. From the beams hung ropes, and one could not pass through this hallway without hitting each rope.

"What the he…?" The expletive stopped dead in Takeo's throat. Shingo noticed a mirror at the end of the hallway.

"Let's just turn around… this is getting ridiculous guys." Mika exclaimed, she no longer had tears in her eyes. "This room… we at least need to get out of this room!"

"Well we can't go back that way, there's that… that…." Yasahiro looked down, defeated. He now had his proof that ghosts existed, but he wasn't going to let his mind know that.

"That ghost? Spirit? Do you have enough scientific proof now?" Takeo pushed Yasahiro back. Yasahiro accepted the push and fixed his glasses once again. Shingo continued down the hall, only glancing once over his shoulder to give his friends a look. He stopped in front of the mirror and shivered. Emotions began to wash over him and he doubled over in pain.

His friends' screams filled the hallway. And then everything went dark for Shingo.


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Usagi awoke with a start. _They… they found it_, Usagi put her head in her hands and cried. Her brother was now in trouble, actually she wasn't even sure he was still alive. "I've gotta find him!"

Usagi jumped out of her bed, quickly running to her dresser to find all the money she could get. She would spare no expense to get to her brother and help him. "Usagi… where are you going?"

The sweet voice rang out, causing Usagi to drop all the money she had in her hand. "L-luna… my brother! He's in danger… I need to find him."

She dressed quickly, and made her way to the bedroom door. "Goodbye Luna."

Searching as quietly as she could through the kitchen drawers, Usagi finally found a useable map. "Mutsu region… there. Now just to find… the Himuro Mountains!"

Usagi scrawled a note, praying her parents wouldn't be too heartbroken. She signed it with a heart. Tip-toeing to the front door, a tear slid down her cheek. _Please let me find my brother… please Lord._

Usagi walked to a nearby bus stop and waited patiently for the bus that would soon be arriving. As the bus arrived, Usagi shivered knowing that this was only the first chill that would run up her spine. Usagi paid her way and sat in the front, knowing fully well that she could have sat on any seat on the bus. She reclined her seat, preparing for a long bus trip. Her eyes slowly closed as she clutched her bus ticket and the shimmering princess slipped into a fitful sleep.

Usagi arrived at her destination after several bus changes and peeked around at a small village in the Mutsu province. The princess wandered the village, asking several villagers whether they knew about the Himuro Mansion, but all of them brushed her off, scurrying away. "Excuse me… excuse me! Please, I'm looking for the Himuro Mansion!"

"Go away, there's no such mansion around here." An older woman with silver hair falling out her simple bun tried to brush Usagi off. The rabbit placed a hand on the woman's shoulder and felt the shivering body give up.

"Please… my brother went to the Himuro Mansion!"

"You'll never see him again, go home."

"So it is around here!" Usagi exclaimed. "Please I'm begging you! Just tell me how to get there."

The older woman shifted uncomfortably, finally giving in to Usagi's pleas, "There's a trail on the east side of the village, go there. But I suggest turning back, you'll never see your brother again. I lost my own child to that mansion…."

"I… I have to try…." Usagi gave a small smile and made her way to the east side of the village. Her sailor sense told her to turn around and head back home, but she pushed on. She loved her brother, even if they fought and argued all the time, he still had a good heart and she knew he was stronger than it appeared.

The young rabbit eventually found the trail that the woman spoke about and pondered what she said. _Had the older woman really lost her child to the mansion? What really happened here?_

_Turn around… turn around… turn around. _That was the mantra that followed Usagi through the thick woods, but she fought it. She was a sailor soldier! This was not supposed to scare her. She's fought several different types of enemies and came out victorious; but how could she fight something she didn't even know existed? Usagi shivered and a cold breath escaped her lips.

Her legs ached to run in the opposite direction, and she was about to give into that desire until the Himuro Mansion loomed in front of her. A name danced on her lips as she stared up in disbelief and terror, "Shingo."

She began to move forward, but stopped, immediately remembering something she packed in her backpack. "Flashlight… flashlight… I know I packed one…."

Something rolled to her feet, causing the rabbit to jump back. What laid before her was a flashlight. "N-no way."

She cautiously kneeled down to pick up the flashlight, telling herself there was no way it would work properly. She flicked it on, falling over as the light shone brightly at the mansion. Clutching it tightly, Usagi was ready to throw it at the mansion and run back towards the village. Shaking her head, Usagi braced for whatever lay ahead. _Pull it together Usa… if you can't handle this, what makes you think you're ready for what lies in there?_

Clenching her teeth, Usagi walked stoically towards the front door of the mansion, knowing there was no longer any chance at turning back. Pulling open the creaking door, Usagi stepped into the pitch black House of Mutilation.


End file.
